Recent Family members passing brings stereo decisions

[srm51555]

Two weeks ago my uncle passed away unexpectedly and left behind some well taken care of Altec (home built 416 woofer ,806 CD, and 511 horn), Mcintosh and B&O equipment. Since he had no children and no will, the items will be either divided up between my father, my other uncle(his brother), my self, or sold off. The B&O speakers and most of the Mcintosh items will most likely stay within the family given it's smaller size but we are undecided about the Altecs. My father and uncle I think are leaning on selling them off and I'm in the middle. This is the stereo that was the family gold standard for us since 1974 so there is some emotional attachment for us, but my father and uncle are in different places on gathering extra stuff at this point in their lives and I guess I can't blame them since I have small children and no place for them either. I'm leaning on letting them go given I have no room and the cabinets are made of trasite. I could make room for the components and do something later with them but they would most likely sit around for a couple of years till I could build new cabinets. The problem is in the future I don't want to regret the decision when remembering my uncle and his setup. Anyone have this situation before.

Thanks,
Scott

[mech986]

IMO, if you can, save them and store them away for that future project. If you have little to no room to store them, prevail upon a family member or friend who does, and pay a small storage fee to do so (beer may work too). Just remember to keep them away from moisture in a cool dry place. You only have one chance to save these particular speakers, and if no one really needs the money (and hassle of selling and shipping) then take the opportunity to save them. Personally, I would also get any of the McIntosh gear if it is electronics, and any turntables.

[Earl K]

Is this what you meant to state, that the cabinets were made out of "Transite" ?

If it is this older cement board ( pre mid 80's ) be very careful about how you dispose of the cabinets .

Older "Transite" was made with asbestos fibers embedded in the cement for strength.

Breaking / cutting / smashing the cement board will release some of the fibrous material, exposing those nearby to possible carcinogenic effects ( if inhaled ) .

Sorry for the bad news .

[svollmer]

Something similar happened to me when my father passed away a couple years ago. I was the only one in the family who was interested in stereo equipment, so I got it all. It didn't take me long to realize that along with my stereo equipment, it was just too much stuff. So, I sold off many items that Dad wasn't too fond of and didn't feel bad about it. I gave several items that my Dad was fond of to lifelong friends who I know love the pieces and will enjoy them for a long time.

Then I had few remaining pieces that were very sentimental to me because I can still recall my Dad and I purchasing them together from Dixie Hi-Fi or George's in the DC Metro area when I was a boy. One of the items, a Marantz 2220B receiver, is enjoying a total recap and refresh job from a friend who's an audio lover and an electronics whiz. Another, a Pioneer SX-950, is in my younger son's system enjoying regular use. When I get the Marantz back, it will enjoy a prominent position in a second system.

My point is that I was able to let go of some of the components while keeping others that would forever remind me of the love for music and audio equipment that my Dad and I shared. You don't have to keep them all, just the ones that are really important to you or the ones you really like.

[srm51555]

Thanks for the replies guy's. Here is an update on what's what.

B&O Speakers- S45.2's were taken by my other uncle. I played around with the S75's and S55's for a couple of nights but decided to pass even for free to me. They both needed some surround work, although the cabinets were still good shape

Mcintosh Gear - The MR78 will be sold along with the MC250. Even though I have the matching Pre-amp and Amp for the MR78, Milwaukee Radio is not that good and better to leave that money to the estate. Myself and my father already have Mc amps so we didn't have a use for it.

Altec Speakers - I actually was able to convince my father that he needed these speaker as both a remembrance and his JBL Decades which actually sound good for what they are just weren't cutting it. I'll most likely be either building an attenuation network for the HF or just EQ'ing (especially 1k-6kHz) and calling it done with these. These speakers will be listened to by me most likely after a rum and coke, which will turn them into sounding very similar to my JBL M2+'s (coining the term for us here at LHF when an M2 is equipped with 4" CD) . Not really though.

Turntables - He only had about 9 complete TT's mostly Dual TT's. I'm not sure what we are doing with these.

Albums - TBD, but if you see me listing a bunch of items you'll know what most likely happening.

Transite- It is unfortunately.

In the end I was very fortunate to have an uncle in Hi-Fi. He taught me a lifetime of information on stereo, music and other oddities. He was the "unique" sibling since he was into electronics and ended up being a service technician. I went to college for being an electrical technician, we would talk about crazy problems we encountered and what fixed them. Thanks again for sharing, I'll update more when I know it.

[svollmer]

Don't the MR78's fetch a pretty good price? Don't let that just go away cheap.

Good on the other things though; glad its working out.

[mech986]

Nice to know you've got things moving along in a good direction.

I wonder if it might just be better to get a good facemask, take the speakers outside, and then take all the components out, being careful not to disturb the cabinet materials, then dispose of the cabinets with some hazmat folks? To me, it isn't worth it to have anything, ANYTHING, with asbestos in it which might be a hazard for family or friends, now or in the future. The key would be to honor your uncle by getting the drivers and system into a well sorted out cabinet built in his honor, perhaps with his name and pic on a plaque nearby.

Since he was in service and repair, you may also search for a bunch of electronics and stereo equipment manuals and literature, maybe even test equipment that has value and use for others. Personally, I know I would be looking for that stuff before it just gets thrown in the dumpster. Easily spread via LH or Audio Karma to people who could use it, and you make something back for the estate. I dare say you uncle would be happy it went to continue helping get stuff service and appreciated by people who value it. Same for any service parts, tools, etc.